coyotes

Recent Articles

Officials are putting up signs in three public parks to advise those who visit them that coyotes are active in the area. Planned for Waveny, Irwin and Bristow—a bird sanctuary attached to Mead Park—the signs include tips on what to do if approached by a coyote and how to protect pets. Officer Allyson Halm, head of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section, said the signs are designed to continue educating locals on how to coexist safely and responsibly with coyotes. “It’s just like the police doing a distracted driver campaign—it’s a forever thing and the conversation just has to keep going,” Halm said. Though coyotes have been denning in recent weeks as pups are born, locals have reported 15 sightings in New Canaan to Animal Control in the past month, Halm said. Continue Reading →

The owners of the Roger Sherman Inn said late Wednesday that the restaurant isn’t closed for good after all. After announcing last month that Jan. 2 would be the Oenoke Ridge Road restaurant’s final day, an email blast shared on social media and signed by Nes Jaffre said “we’re extending our stay.” It isn’t clear how long it will be open or what’s the reason for the extension—the property is to be redeveloped by a Norwalk man, pending approval from the town. The Roger Sherman will serve in its bar and on its heated porch, and the dining room is available by request, according to the bulletin. Continue Reading →

Residents of northern New Canaan are voicing concerns about the welfare of a coyote that’s been spotted multiple times for the last two weeks dragging a leg hold trap through the snow. First seen Dec. 12 by a Jonathan Road resident, the animal is suffering because of what appears to be a botch job by an amateur or otherwise unqualified trapper, according to Officer Allyson Halm, head of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section. “This is just legal animal cruelty,” Halm said of the animal, which she herself saw briefly on Wednesday. No one has been able to photograph the animal, though pictures of its tracks—paws and the trap—are clear in the snow (see photo at right). Continue Reading →

Police are urging residents to keep their dogs leashed when walking at Waveny following a report that coyote charged one there. At about 7:40 p.m. on April 22, a resident told police that a coyote emerged from the woods and ran toward his leashed dog while they walked in the park. That could be a sign that it was an unhealthy animal, according to Officer Allyson Halm, head of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section. “If there’s a den in the area then certainly the adults will be more protective,” Halm said. “It’s also possible that the animal wasn’t a healthy animal. Continue Reading →

A small dog suffered puncture wounds on its throat during what appears to be a run-in with a coyote off of Parade Hill Lane last week, officials said. At about 11 p.m. on April 7, a resident of the street let out a Bichon Frise and Labradoodle and soon heard a commotion and saw both dogs running back toward the house, injured, according to a police report. The larger dog had wounds to its legs, and both animals are now confined during a 45-day home observation period, said Officer Allyson Halm of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section. “If you are letting dogs out at dawn or dusk, go out first and make noises yourself—this will alert skunks and raccoons and other wildlife, and then let your dogs out,” Halm said. “It is those hours, the dark hours, that these animals are out and about.”

The home where the confrontation occurred on Parade Hill Lane backs up to the New Canaan Nature Center’s property. Continue Reading →